There Goes My Heart (The Sullivans #20) - Bella Andre Page 0,3

of Maine had nearly demolished it. Last year, his brother Brandon had mentioned it during Friday night dinner with the family, and Rory had known instantly he had to buy it. He’d needed to move somewhere he could be alone, where no one was close enough to drop by and ask him if he was okay when he felt like standing in the high tower and staring out into the rugged, swirling sea for hours on end.

Since moving in, he’d been renovating the living quarters in his spare time. Though he wasn’t done, thus far he’d made good progress in the living room, kitchen, master bedroom, and bath. He’d also done the necessary work to make the lighthouse fully operational again—and he’d done operator training with the state, as well—so whenever a strong storm blew in, he stood watch in the tower the way a true lighthouse keeper would have.

Rory had loved growing up in Bar Harbor, and though he’d traveled extensively after college, he’d always planned to come back to the small town in northern Maine. His family was here, his friends were here, and the woods and ocean that inspired his furniture were here too.

Zara woke as he lifted her out of the truck. “Why are you carrying me?”

“It’s what knights in shining armor do.” Even when she was having one hell of a morning, he couldn’t resist teasing her.

He thought he saw her lips curve up slightly before she buried her face against his chest. “You smell nice.” She inhaled, loud enough that he could hear it. “I wish you didn’t.” And then she fell asleep again.

She smelled good too. A little like the Prosecco she’d dripped on herself, but mostly like lavender-scented shampoo.

Again, he told himself his attraction to her must be due to the long, cold year he’d had without female companionship. No sex, and no dates either. Not since the horrible night of Chelsea’s accident.

His family, he knew, was still worried about him, though none of them had outright said anything in recent months. They didn’t have to speak their concerns out loud when their glances spoke volumes.

Stepping inside his house, he decided that though Zara would surely be more comfortable sleeping off the booze in a bed, he didn’t want her to wake up later and worry that anything might have happened between them. It was far more likely that lightning would strike through his roof out of the bright blue sky than that they’d ever sleep together. Nonetheless, he got how iffy waking up in his bed would feel for her.

He laid her on the leather couch, propping two pillows behind her head and covering her with a blanket he’d purchased from the fiber artist in their building. Half the contents of his home had been sourced from Bar Harbor artists. He appreciated the local support he’d received from the start and was happy to give back to the maker community, especially when they were all so talented.

Zara was one of the most talented among them. Rory didn’t need glasses, but the frames she designed and manufactured sometimes made him wish he did. He had bought a handful of pairs for his cousins on the West Coast, and he’d been glad to hear that they liked them enough to pass the word on to their friends, who had subsequently also bought frames via her online sales portal.

Rory knew how hard it was to set up shop for yourself—to find the money to pay for materials, shipping, and warehouse space ninety days before your invoices were paid. In the early years, every sale counted more than your customers knew.

Keeping an eye on Zara to make sure she was doing okay, he walked into his open-plan kitchen and poured ground coffee into the machine. She’d be desperate for a cup when she woke up, and she growled at him enough on a good day for him to guess how loud her growl would be on a bad one.

Though there were hours of work waiting for him in his workshop, he mentally pushed his to-do list aside and pulled out a sketchbook. Might as well take advantage of the quiet time to get some new ideas for a bench down in black and white.

Right then, Zara’s snores ramped up. Okay, so it wasn’t exactly quiet in his house. But, even if she wasn’t someone he’d ever envisioned hanging out with, he was surprised to realize it was nice to share his home with another person.